SoulCalibur: The Waking Swords
by TerriblyDisturbed
Summary: One year after the events of SoulCalibur V, a voice in the wind guides two young souls towards their destiny. An Idea for SoulCalibur VI.
1. CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER ONE - LONESOME HEART AND THE SHADOW

* * *

A quiet rustling was all that could be heard as they ran. Years of training had prepared them for moments like this, to be quiet, to fade into the darkness. It felt second nature to them, even though the woods through which they ran were strangers to both of them. Neither of them knew where it was they were going, but it didn't matter. All they needed to do was stay quiet, stay hidden and follow the woman in the wind.

It was Etienne who had heard her first. It was just after a bout in the training yard with Lord Rundas, the hunter. She had spoken to him in whispers then. She told him of a great danger on the horizon, that he should leave. But he had not listened, Etienne had thought himself mad in fact and Novio had agreed when he told him, but when her voice returned on the eve of their trip abroad Novio had heard it too and so they had taken what weapons and supplies they could carry and left. As they fled the keep the woman began to sing. A song, in a language neither of them could understand. They followed song across the rocky hills that surrounded the keep and into the tree line they were forbidden to cross.

The trees, and the song, and the trickling water of the many streams that ran through the wood made them feel more at ease, but they never stopped. They couldn't. They knew the Priestess wouldn't allow her boys to abandon her as they had without repercussions, and with the Young Prophet guiding her, she would eventually find them wherever they hid.

Two days they ran, stopping only for water before Etienne called for a stop. He could see the fatigue etched on Novio's face and he knew his reflection would show him the same dare he look.

"Why are we stopping?" Novio asked. His breaths were steady and deep, but he winced with every inhale.

"We need food, we need water, and we need to rest," Etienne replied.

Novio paused for a moment, seemingly taking in Etienne's appearance for the first time, and then nodded. Etienne could only imagine what he was seeing. Novio had always been the handsome one, with his lithe frame and precisely cut hair. Even his training scars seemed to complement his face, but at the moment, he looked sickly. His skin pasty white and eyes so dark and red they seemed as if they were sunken into his face.

Etienne tore his eyes away from his friend and busied himself filling his canteen at the stream. Seeing Novio the way he was made him question leaving and he couldn't afford to question it now. He took a long drink and dug through the pouch at his belt for a strip of cured beef. He chewed the tough strip, savouring the salt and spices as they reminded him just how hungry he had been all this time. Lying back, he tilted his head upward to find that Novio too was chewing a strip of the beef they had stolen.

Novio made his way over to him and took a place in the grass next to him, stripping off his boots and gently sinking his feet into the cold stream.

"Will we sleep here?" He asked after a time.

Etienne took a moment to study his surroundings as they had been taught to. The tall trees that surrounded them had branches large enough to sleep on if they tied themselves off or else there was the bed of roots closer to the stream that created an overhang where the dirt had washed away in some heavy rain. He looked back at Novio and nodded; either option would do.

Etienne sat up and crossed his legs in front of him then leaned forward, peering into the stream. He was taken aback by how horrible the creature was that looked back at him. His curly auburn locks were tangled and windblown, and the circles around his eyes made him look corpselike in contrast with his pale freckled skin. He scowled at himself for a moment, but it only made him look worse, so he stood up quickly stripped down to his underclothes and ran into the stream.

Novio complained at the splashes, but by the time Etienne was in deep enough to dunk his head Novio was stripping down to his underclothes too.

Etienne ran a hand through his hair as he resurfaced briefly pausing at a twig and plucking it out. He rubbed his face roughly and could taste the sweat and dirt in the water as it ran down his face. It was the most satisfying bath he could remember.

When he was done, Etienne made his way back to the shore and rinsed their clothes in the stream. He hung them all around on the lower lying branches of the surrounding trees and then laid himself out on the one patch of the grassy forest floor that the sun reached through the trees unhindered, to dry off himself. As he lay there he watched Novio swim lazy circles in the stream. He remembered a story Novio had told him once of the time before being taken in by the Priestess. Like Etienne, Novio had been an orphan in a great city, but the city Novio was from had sandy beaches that went on for as far as the eye could see. He said there was a city near to there that floated on the water, though Etienne was never sure he truly believed that part. Novio had told him that he and the other orphans in the city used to steal so much of the clothes that people left on the beach that he never once had to mend an article of clothing that had grown worn.

The sun was near setting before Novio dragged himself from the water, by which time Etienne had set about clearing away some of the prickly plants and vines that had grown under the bed of roots. As Novio dressed, Etienne covered the ground with some large ferns he found nearby.

For a while, the two of them sat tucked below the overhanging roots staring into the night. Every cracking branch was their pursuers footsteps approaching, every rustling branch the sound of their tutor's spies. But then the wind came and on it the sweet voice they had followed into the woods.

"Rest." She told them, and once more she began to sing.

This song was quieter, more solemn, though they still did not understand any of the words. Even without meaning, it was peaceful and before long both boys found themselves drifting to sleep.

A sweet smell woke Etienne in the morning, something like the smell of white flowers in the spring. As his eyes adjusted to the grey light of morning, Etienne was frightened to find that he and Novio were no longer alone in the woods. A pale young woman crouched before them, watching them as they sleep. She wore a lavish violet hood over her pale hair and in her steel-clawed hand she clutched a curious glass orb.

Etienne reached out to where he had set down his kukri knives, but they were gone. A small mocking smile flashed on her face, but she didn't speak or even flinch. She gestured to Novio with a small nod and so Etienne reached out to him and gently shook him awake.

Before his eyes had even opened, Novio too had reached out for his weapons only to find them missing as well. He gazed upon the strange woman with furrowed brows, but like Etienne remained silent. She took a moment to look them each in the eye, judging Etienne felt, and after settling her gaze on Etienne she spoke.

"Come now, lonesome heart," she said in a bored tone. "Your shadow will follow."

With that, she stood and after a brief hesitation Etienne found himself following suit. She made her way over to a man Etienne had not even noticed was there. He looked far more dangerous than the woman, with his dark eyes and tattoos across his chest. He held their weapons in a leather thong over his shoulder.

Etienne followed the man and woman as they began to walk east through the woods and he could hear Novio's footsteps following closely behind him.

"Why are we following them?" he asked quietly over Etienne's shoulder. "We don't know who they are… what they want." Before Etienne had a chance to reply or even think of a reason why he was following the strangers, the woman answered for him.

"They call me Viola." She said bluntly in the same bored tone as before. "My travelling companion is called Zwei. And we don't want anything."

Etienne and Novio quickened their pace to catch up with the two strangers striding through the wood ahead of them.

"Then why not return our weapons and let us be on our way?" Novio asked as they came up beside them.

"The lonesome heart knows why," Viola replied, watching Etienne from the corner of what he could see now where piercing red eyes. "Death hunts you both and you have nowhere to go. The wind has blown you to sanctuary."

That peaked Etienne's attention.

"You've heard her as well?" He questioned.

Viola shook her head softly and then Zwei did too.

"Then how do you know she showed us the way?" Novio asked.

"I've seen her," Viola said, and in place of her bored tone was a mystic one. "Mother to many, she hides in the sky with her children. She did not act when the sky was cut open and chaos spilled out, but it seems _your_ fates have forced her hand."

"I am not sure I understand," Etienne admitted.

"Of course you don't. She speaks in riddles." Novio grumbled beside him.

"If she didn't speak to you, why are you helping us? How did you know where we were?" Etienne continued.

"We are all connected on the web of fate, lonesome heart." She spoke to him. "I could feel the weight of your destiny pulling at the threads."

"And… what destiny is that?"

Viola did not answer Etienne's question, she only offered a sad smile and continued on her way. Etienne met Novio's gaze, the non-response was troubling to say the least.

The rest of their journey continued in silence, both boys too afraid to speak lest they invoke some answer they would not like.

As they travelled the woods grew denser and then thinned again. It seemed the woods would end at any moment, but no clearing ever came into view. Zwei, at the head of the group stopped suddenly and held his hand up for the rest to follow suit. Etienne watched as Zwei seemed to smell at the air his eyes scanning every tree in front of them.

"Zwei and Viola, returning." He called out to the trees. Surprisingly, a voice called back to him.

"You do not travel alone." The voice replied.

"They are… friends," Zwei called again. "Etienne and Novio." He gestured at them both respectively. Seemingly from nowhere, a large group of armoured men and women began to appear from the forest. They drew closer but stopped just in front of Zwei as a tall battle-scarred man with long blond hair made his way to the front of the group.

"These boys," the man spoke in his rough voice. "Why have you brought them here?"

The man looked from Zwei to Viola and back again. It was Viola who finally spoke.

"They are hunted."

"So?" He replied.

"In the moon, I saw them… and those who pursue, wake the hand of Hephaestus."

The man seemed to understand what this meant, where Etienne did not.

"Which hand?" He asked. "Will they offer us aid?

"This I could not see," Viola admitted. "Though, either of the children seems more likely than the mother."

"Nobody has seen them in over a year," He said more to himself. "Why return now, do they even know what's going on here?"

"Is it possible the swords are back?" Zwei offered. "They were the last known wielders, it would make sense."

The man looked to Viola for some sort of confirmation but received only a small shake of the head.

"I do not see the swords in play here," she said. "But something is… missing. A thread I cannot unravel."

"You said you saw the return… where?" the man asked.

"A dark tower with a great storm at its crest, then that same tower again, in ruin. I've seen it, though I do not know where it is."

The man's eyebrows furrowed in thought.

"I think I do."

The man gave them the night to rest and in the morning sent them in search of the tower he suspected Viola seen in her visions. He told them that the tower was once the stage of a great battle between the spirit sword Soulcalibur and its rival Soul Edge that drew together warriors from all across the world. It was here that the awakening would occur and so the four companions went east.

It was three days into their journey to the ruined tower that Etienne and Novio were granted access to their weapons. With the realization that seeking out the tower meant seeking a confrontation with the very people they had run from all this time, Etienne and Novio had taken to sparring whenever the group stopped to make camp. Weaponless, the pair worked only on their hand-to-hand combat, until Zwei who watched on impressed by the skill of such young boys wanted to see what they were capable of weapons in hand.

Armed, the two of them were quite evenly matched, though they could not have fought more differently. Etienne, with his kukri knives, was quick and acrobatic. He moved with a cold mechanical deadliness and was ruthlessly unrelenting. Watching Novio fight, on the other hand, was more akin to watching a dance than a battle. He wielded two thin short swords and danced around the battlefield with such flourish.

The skirmish didn't end until both boys were completely spent, both so glad to be armed once more that they dared not be the first to relent.

Completely drained of energy, the boys both slept early and in good spirits.

When they woke in the morning, the mood was changed. Zwei was stood, blade in hand peering out into the forest around them and Viola knelt on the ground staring into the strange orb she carried with her.

"What's happening?" Novio asked, concerned.

"We're not alone," Zwei replied.

The boys quickly grabbed their weapons, scanning the woods as they did. Alas, nothing seemed to come for them.

Then they heard it, the screech of an owl. Only, both boys knew too well… it wasn't an owl.

"They're coming," Novio called to their companions. "They've found us."

Etienne clenched his knives tightly, unsure of what to expect or who. Would the priestess send the hunter alone, would she join him or worse yet would the young prophet be with them? The thought alone sent a shiver down Etienne's spine.

It was Lord Rundas that attacked, leaping down upon them from the treetops, his talon-like blades at his feet. He distracted and defended with the draping fabric at his arms, all the while attacking each of them in turn with powerful kicks. He seemed able to take them all on at once and they had not yet laid a scratch on him.

It was then that the priestess Eris made her appearance. Her bright white robes blinding in the sun she would look angelic if not for the golden mask that covered her eyes and lead upward to form horns above her head.

She approached holding her scepter. Etienne had never once seen her use it in combat, but she seemed poised to do so now.

She approached Viola from behind and lashed out with the scepter, but Viola's orb blocked the attack. Viola broke off from the fight with the Hunter to face the Priestess one on one. The Priestess attacked with stiff calculated strikes, the force behind them making a deep thud every time it came into contact with Viola's orb.

The Hunter seemed to be everywhere at once in the middle of the other fighters, kicking at Etienne, tangling his robes in Novio's swords and dodging the ferocious attacks from Zwei. A swift kick to the face sent Novio hurtling backward. Etienne could see blood pouring from his face as he lay still on the rocky ground. Zwei seemed to grow even more vicious then, attacking the Hunter unrelentingly. Etienne watched as a purple haze formed around Zwei as he fought and then from his back emerged some sort of wolf or at least, the spirit of one.

The wolf fought alongside Zwei as if they shared a mind, attacking and defending in turns. It was working and twice the Hunter stumbled. In a panic, Lord Rundas reached into his robes and pulled from it a handful of what looked like black sand and smirking, threw it into the air above him. The very air around the group seemed for a moment to turn inky black and when it cleared the Hunter had vanished.

Etienne looked to see if the Eris had vanished too, but instead, it seemed she had gotten the upper hand on Viola. Etienne threw one of his knives hurtling toward her back, but in an instant, she was facing him. She batted the knife to the side with her scepter and smiled.

"My sweet boy," she said quietly. "You would harm me after all I have done for you? Your fate cannot be avoided."

Her robes blew about her in a wind she seemed to conjure and as the robes spun into each other and vanished so to did she.

Etienne stood for a moment bewildered and amazed, having never seen either of his former mentors perform such feats during his years in their care until he remembered the state of Novio.

Etienne ran to where Novio laid, his face now completely covered in blood. He tried his best to wipe it away with the cloth of his shirt, but the blood still trickled from the singular slice that ran from his right cheekbone, under his nose, and across his lips.

"I failed to see this," Viola spoke from over his shoulder. He looked back to see her standing there with Zwei who held out the knife he had thrown at the Priestess. Viola crouched next to him and ran her hand over the wound. "I can help this to heal, but it will mark him forever."

Viola created a poultice from some of the surrounding vegetation and applied it to Novio's wound. Within just a few hours the painful redness had disappeared and it began to show signs of healing.

As the group waited for Novio to wake they rested and made fire, no longer attempting to hide. Etienne sat by the fire with Novio's head in his lap, absently running his hand through his hair. Viola watched on curiously.

"The two of you are… very close?" She asked.

The words pulled Etienne away from his thoughts and it took him a moment to realize what she had asked him.

"I suppose… yes," he said, after a time. "He is the only friend I can remember having."

"Were you the only two kids… wherever you lived with the Priestess and her goon?" Zwei asked.

"No, there was one other," Etienne replied. "The young prophet they call him. He is of an age with us, but from the moment they took me in, I was… five or six at the time; even then I could tell he was different. I was so afraid of him... He always acted so much older than he was. He treated me like a child, but what was he? I hated him… so much, it was the reason I was so eager to help them when they asked me to bring in Novio."

"Novio specifically?" Zwei questioned, leaning in intrigued.

Etienne nodded.

"I don't know why though," he added. "At the time I thought he might replace me, and before I found him I think I resented him for it… gods know why, but when Lord Rundas… the man with the talons you met earlier. When he brought me to the little alley where Novio lived with all the other children their city had forgotten, I just couldn't anymore. There he was in the center of all the others, telling some grand story of warriors sent by the gods themselves, and all of them… they loved him. _I_ loved him. He was the friend I dreamt of having, the friend I prayed to the gods for. And so, even though I knew he would hate it as I did, I put everything I had into convincing him to come back with me…"

"You were a child," Viola offered. "You were lonely."

"I was selfish," Etienne muttered. "I knew he would hate it, I knew the training hurt, I knew they were bad people… but I made him come, because… because I was afraid of being stuck there on my own with those people. And I- I thought so highly of myself… I actually told myself that it wouldn't be as bad for him 'cause he would have me… I think deep down I knew I was wrong, but I kept telling myself over and over until he followed me onto the carriage home. And you do you want to know the saddest part? He was excited the whole way. I had made it sound so wonderful that he was glad to be leaving."

Etienne was surprised at how worked up he had made himself. He could feel tears prickling at his eyes and knew the others must have seen them, but still he dared not blink and let them fall.

"Oh, lonesome heart," Viola spoke softly. "Know that he does not dwell on it as you do, he follows you into danger still, knowingly."

For the first time since he began telling his story, Etienne looked down at the boy he had lured that day to find that his eyes were open, watching him worriedly. Etienne felt his whole body clench as his mind raced. How long had he been awake? The two had never spoken to each other about how they met before or why. Would Novio judge him now that he knew how selfish Etienne had been?

"I am sorry," Etienne whispered, so quietly he could scarcely say himself whether he actually spoke at all. But, Novio heard him. He closed his eyes once more, rolled on his side to face Etienne, and after adjusting a few times to get comfortable fell back asleep. Unwittingly, Etienne returned to running his fingers through his friend's hair.

Etienne must have fallen asleep sometime shortly after because the next thing he knew it was morning and Zwei and Viola were packing up camp around him. He looked down to find Novio still curled in his lap asleep. He shook him gently by the shoulder. Novio scowled at him as he woke. He sat up and Etienne couldn't help but to reach up and touch his wounded face. Viola's poultice had done its job, very well in fact. The wound had completely scarred over in the night; there was even a small gap in the scar just above his upper lip where the poultice had healed it completely leaving no trace.

The boys were dressed and ready by the time Viola and Zwei had completely struck the camp, and within minutes, they set off. They had travelled half a day when they came to the field of obsidian. It was waves of shimmering black topped with bright green where only the strongest grasses and plants had begun to grow upon the rock.

"This is it," Viola announced as they made their way across the field of stone, but none of them could see any signs of a tower ruined or not. They searched until the sun grew low around them before they found it.

As they reached the top of one of the many inky ridges they finally saw it, the very peak of the tower standing alone half submerged in the glossy stone. Only three portions of its decorative crown remained, but its form was imposing just the same.

As they approached the top of the tower the decorations appeared more and more ominous, like three dark daggers cutting at the sky. And as they made their way around the great structures they learned that they weren't alone. Waiting for them there was Lord Rundas, the Priestess Eris and the Young Prophet himself. He smiled as they approached.

"We are all here for the same thing," he boomed. "We want to bring back the hand of Hephaestus and get humanity back on the right track."

"Then do it," Novio replied. "Why wait for us?"

"The two of you are the most important part," the Prophet answered. "The two of you were both born the day the chaos opened and the tower came down. You must be the ones to open it again so that the hand can return."

"And how do we do that?" Etienne asked.

"To revisit that day, to open that same chaos…" the Prophet explained. "We must spill the blood of one of you. One of those born of it, and it must be spilt by the hands of another."

"We _aren't_ going to do that," Etienne replied.

"You'd have to be mad to think we would even consider it," added Novio.

"Fortunately," the Prophet supplied. "I too was born on that day… reborn actually, but it should do the trick."

The Young Prophet's golden eye seemed to glow and in an instant he was upon the group in a flurry of white robes, slashing at them with his scythe. Etienne blocked the first attacks, but failed to dodge a kick and was sent hurtling across the hard black surface. He watched as Zwei approached the Prophet with his wolf spirit sprouting from his back and was stopped by attacks by the Hunter and the Priestess both.

Viola sent her orb hurtling in the Prophet's direction, but he batted it out of the air with ease.

"I remember you… forgetful girl," He said to her. "Let me help you remember me." He smiled his wicked smile and his golden eye glowed with a blinding light. Suddenly, Viola was on her knees and letting out a horrifying scream. She held her head as the memories she had searched so long for were painfully returned to her.

The Young Prophet turned his attention to Novio, who readied his swords. The prophet was upon him at once, slashing away, and though it wasn't easy Novio deflected every attempt. The Prophet seemed to grow angry, and with his anger came a renewed strength. Novio seemed to struggle increasingly with every coming blow and then the Prophet spun round and thrust the bottom end of his scythe right into Novio's stomach.

"No." Etienne cried.

Novio fell to his knees, blood soaking the fabric of his shirt and streaming to the ground. Etienne made a run for his friend, but just as he neared a resounding crack rumbled the earth and brought everyone to a standstill.

Everyone present watched on as a glowing crack appeared from behind Novio and spread to the sky. It split open and like a great vacuum Novio was sucked into its black and purple whorls.

Tears filled Etienne's eyes at the sight, but he couldn't help but watch the portal for any signs of someone else coming through. For the longest time, nothing happened and the only sound was the wind pouring into the astral chaos. It wasn't until the portal began to close that a body was sent hurtling out. It landed with a thud on the ground in front of Etienne. Novio reached out a hand but recoiled as the body started to move. It was a young woman, with long blond hair tied back in a ponytail. In her hand, she held a long-sword.

The woman stood, a wild look in her eye. She shouted out in pain or… anger? It was hard to tell. She looked around suddenly, her head moving in jerky movements and her eyes scanning everything all at once. That is until she spotted the Prophet.

"Zasalamel!" She screamed, pointing her sword at him. "I'll kill you."

"Calm yourself girl." Zasalamel replied coolly.

"Calm myself?" she scoffed. "You destroyed my family… you're the reason I was trapped in that hell."

She pointed her sword behind her and gestured to the empty space where the portal had stood. Zasalamel smiled.

"I am here to set you back on the right path, Cassandra."

Her scowl deepened into a contorted rage and in an instant her blade was above her head and she was charging straight for the young prophet. As she brought her blade down, the priestess stepped between the pair. The sword lodged itself in her golden headdress with a dull clunk and she fell. As she hit the ground, her body, her robes, everything that was the priestess Eris turned to smoke and ash and polluted the air. Cassandra stepped back, shielding her face from the smoke and Zasalamel laughed.

His robes swirled around him in a wind that wasn't there, just as the priestess's had in the woods.

"And so it begins," he smiled.

His robes twisted in on him and then he was gone.


	2. CHAPTER TWO

Chapter 02 - The Cave

* * *

The comrades stood silent on the glassy black plain. Etienne was lost staring at the space in the air where Novio had just been taken from him and wondering how everything they'd done to survive could have been so pointless. All this distance, all this running, all of this fighting and for what, to wake the Hand of Hephaestus? Nobody ever mentioned this woman Cassandra. They had failed and Novio had died for it.

It was Viola who came to him, finally woken from the blackout Zasalamel had caused her.

"We cannot linger here, Lonesome Heart," she said, with a shaky hand on his shoulder. And of course, Etienne knew why. The crack in the ground left by the portal had been spreading since the thing had collapsed, and who could tell what lay beneath the glossy black surface upon which they stood?

Etienne rose slowly with his head hung low and let Viola guide him back to the others. As they rejoined the group, Etienne noticed that Cassandra looked like she had been crying. Her eyes were red and puffy and her cheeks were shiny with dampness, but still, she stood strong and valiant. Even though she wasn't the one they had sought out, Etienne felt awed by her presence and found himself making an effort to stand up straight in spite of his grief.

They travelled for a fortnight to return to the woods where Siegfried and his band were camped. As Viola and Zwei took Cassandra to see their leader, Etienne made his way to the tent where he had stayed when they had last camped with Schwarzwind and for the first time in a very long time he was alone. He took a seat amongst his pillows, he pulled his blankets up around him and he wept. He wept for his friend, lost to the void. He wept for their failure, so complete. And he wept for himself, or at least the boy he once was. He was changed now; he could feel it in his blood.

"Lonesome heart." Etienne jumped, startled by Viola's silent entrance. He wiped his face embarrassed by his own tears, but Viola seemed sympathetic in her own way.

"You've called me 'lonesome heart'… since we first met," Etienne spoke slowly as he gathered his thoughts. "Did you know? Did you know that this would happen the whole time, that we would fail?"

"In the moon, I saw you here in this very tent," she said. As she spoke she began to move about the tent, her fingers feeling the air as if seeing the vision again. "I felt the sadness, dark and wet. I felt the loneliness too, but it was not new… this tree had roots and they ran deep. I did not see that the tree had a shadow, but there it is now in the red light of the moon."

"And Novio is the shadow?"

"No, Lonesome Heart," she smiled. "He is _your_ shadow and yours alone."

Etienne couldn't understand her riddles, but something about her tone was comforting. Viola took a seat in front of him and held out her orb for him. As he took it, he could feel it exuding an energy that nipped at his hands. She searched his eyes... for what, Etienne did not know.

"As I slept amongst the black rock, I dreamt of a girl. A girl I had long forgotten," she spoke, quietly. "The girl was a moth trapped in a spider's web, cursed with a dark soul and a darker companion. Horrible things were done in her name and horrible things she did. When the moon turned around a man came, plucked the moth from the web, and set her free, but the moth didn't fly. She had witnessed such tragedy… so many terrors… it broke her spirit and she longed to forget. You have the moth's eyes now, as they were then. Your heart may not be intact, but you cannot allow your spirit to crumble. It may be possible to mend, but it is not so easy to rebuild... trust me."

With that she took the orb from his hands and made her way out of the tent. Etienne was perplexed by her words, but he felt he no longer wished to cry. Instead, he blew out the lantern that illuminated the room and lay down to sleep.

"Time to get up, kid," Zwei shouted from the flap of the tent. "We're heading out."

"We're leaving, why?" Etienne asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes as he did.

"Viola had a vision," he explained. "Something about… the wind, your friend, the hands that hold swords and the mountains or something. I honestly don't know."

Zwei exited the tent and Etienne hurriedly got ready. As he emerged from the tent, Etienne was faced with disappointment. He had expected the whole group to be travelling, yet only Zwei and Viola stood ready to embark.

"Are they not coming?" he asked. "I thought we needed the hand of Hephaestus?"

"No, the Hand is needed for great things, but the Hand is needed elsewhere," Viola answered. "Worry not, Lonesome Heart. We will not complete this journey alone."

Viola and Zwei made their way to the edge of the forest clearing with Etienne close behind them, but they stopped before entering the wood.

"Why have we stopped?" Etienne asked.

"Because only you can tell us where we're going," Zwei explained.

Etienne scoffed, "how am I supposed to-"

Then he heard her. The woman in the wind, who had started them on this journey so long ago.

"Find me," she said. "This way… trust in the wind." And as she spoke her voice trailed to the east. Without a word, Etienne began towards it at a bit of a jog and Viola and Zwei followed.

The wind drove them forward and for two months they travelled east across rolling plains, through densely packed cities and forests so thick that they could scarcely make it through. When the mountains appeared on the horizon, Viola confirmed that they were the mountains she had seen in her visions. It was a fortnight from there to the base of the mountains and three more days climbing before they reached their destination. A great temple, carved from the mountain itself. The wind played the music of flutes as it blew through the temples grand archways and great chimes jingled gently from within. As they entered the temple the residents watched them curiously. Etienne noted that there were no adults amongst the faces that peered at them, the oldest seemed of an age with Etienne, but most seemed younger.

"Welcome," called the woman in the wind. Only, for the first time, she spoke to them in person. The woman approaching them wore a headdress and garb made of fabrics so thin and light that they seemed to dance about her as she walked. She was adorned with many small bells and metal trinkets that jingled as she moved.

As she made her way towards the group the children gathered in around, her all eager to get a closer look at the new arrivals.

"You have traveled very far to get here," she said softly. "Rest now and when you wake I will tell you of the futures _I_ have seen."

The group was brought to a room with three comfortable feather beds to sleep on. They undressed quickly and fell asleep just as fast.

They awoke to a breakfast of fresh fruits and biscuits served to them by several of the older children and when they finished eating they were joined by the woman in the wind herself.

"You must have a lot of questions," she said in way of opening. "Let me start by introducing myself. My name is Talim, and I am the priestess to the wind."

"And the children?" Zwei asked.

"They are just a few of the many children orphaned by the battles caused by the swords," she answered sadly. "They had nowhere to go, so I took them in and when there came a time when there was too many of us to fit in our home, the wind sent us here and we have worked diligently to restore this place ever since."

"This place... it's history... I can feel it in the air." Viola said. As she spoke she raised her hand into the air and moved it about as if the air itself was thick.

"This temple was once home to the servants of the wind, they were forced to abandon it in order to search for a new priestess when the last was fell ill. They never returned, until now."

"You and the orphans?" questioned Zwei

"When they came to my village all of the children underwent a test and when _my_ test was over, I became their new priestess... the last, they said."

"How could they know that?" Etienne asked.

"The wind carries all of the answers, but you're right... the wind changes."

She turned now to address only Etienne.

"I saw your friends fate in the wind and I thought I could change it, but I see now that I only helped fate along. The wind has seen your grief and now it shows me the way I can truly help."

"Help... help Novio?"

She smiled at him then. "We _can_ save your friend, but first we need to save another. A boy born of the chaos just as you and Novio were. You must find him and together you can reopen the portal."

"You want us to sacrifice another kid?" Zwei asked.

"There are less cruel ways," she said. "Nobody needs to die, but the winds are clear. We must get Novio back and with this boy, you can make this happen."

"Where do we find this kid?"

"The wind takes you west, to a mansion in the perfumed city. There you will find the boy with his tutor, a woman as ageless as the wind."

"She talks just like you, V." Zwei joked.

"When do we leave?" Etienne was reinvigorated by the news that they could save Novio.

"You will be on your way shortly," Talim said calmly.

"Wait... you aren't coming? We came all this way to find you." Etienne complained.

"My path leads me elsewhere, buy fear not. You _will_ see me again before this is finished."

With that the priestess took her leave. Etienne turned to his companions to judge their reactions to the woman's words. As trustworthy as this woman seemed, Etienne trusted Viola a great deal more.

"What she said..." Etienne began, "have you seen it too?"

"I've seen you alongside another, both of you wear shrouds of loneliness. I see this boy again with a woman so tainted by curses even time itself will not touch her." She levelled her gaze with Etienne now, "and I see the two of you again, hand in hand... covered in blood."

"Who's blood?" Etienne asked.

"Does that mean we fail again?" Zwei followed.

"I have told you what I see, how we interpret these images makes all the difference."

"What do you... _think_ they mean."Etienne clarified.

"These visions are unclear, and they have grown less clear since I first saw you, Lonesome Heart. I believe... we should not so easily assume that destiny is on our side."

Etienne slept uneasily that night, visions of he and his companions sucked into the astral chaos flooding his dreams.

When he awoke the sky was a dull grey and there was a fog that hung low in the air. As usual, Viola and Zwei were midway through their morning routine. Etienne quickly ate what breakfast they had left aside for him and got dressed before they departed.

* * *

Six months had past since they left the wind temple and it had been weeks since Viola had informed them that they were nearing their destination. Etienne was growing restless, and it was pretty clear that the rest of the group was feeling the same. Where typically they filled the empty space with banter and conversation, they now walked in silence and the nightly training sessions Etienne had with Zwei had ended with the two taking turns making excuses not to spar.

As they walked they came across the first town they had seen in days. It was a small town and it had a dampness to it. Moss grew across the roofs of all of the small homes and farms, and the muddy roads had deep trenches where the rain waters had worn small rivers into it.

They walked through the town slowly and the few townsfolk who were braving the misty drizzle watched them warily. When they reached the only crossroads in the town, Viola guided them to the left and for the first time in what seemed like ages Etienne noticed that she wore the unfocused look that told him she was seeing something that Zwei and himself were not. She picked up speed and the two of them followed suit. They were basically running when they reached the low stone wall with the iron gate that surrounded the great manse that they were destined to visit. Viola pushed the gate open and Zwei lead the way forward. Etienne could feel his heartbeat speeding up in his chest. His worry, lost in the monotony of their travels, returned full force. The journey had surely been too easy... no visits from the prophet and his minions, no battle at all, just... walking.

The grand gate gave an ominous creak as the group pushed through. The old house was perfectly kept but as they approached Etienne still felt a sense of dread. Viola rapped on the door with one of the big brass knockers and it seemed to echo through the fog-like mist. They stood there silently on the step, but not a sound came from inside the house.

Three more times Viola lifted the knocker and three more times they were met with silence, they had nearly resigned to return the following day when the door crept open.

Standing there was a tall woman with hair whiter even than Viola's. Etienne thought she looked stern and when she finally spoke her tone only added to that opinion.

"What is it?" she asked.

"We are looking for the kid who lives here," Zwei replied. "Should be the same age as my friend here." Zwei pushed Etienne forward a bit for comparison, but the woman didn't seem impressed.

"And you thought, what... You would simply knock and I would allow you inside?"

Zwei initially caught off guard by her attitude, recomposed himself before continuing.

"We don't mean anyone any harm… But we can't leave here without the boy."

The woman laughed and to Etienne, it appeared she was genuinely humoured by the threat against her, but as her laugh died out her face grew dark.

"He's not going anywhere."

She moved to close the door, but Zwei stopped it with a growl.

"Please miss," Etienne stepped forward. "We need him… he is the only one who can help me save my friend."

The woman eyed him with curiosity. "How? Why him?"

"He is like me," Etienne explained. "Together we can open the portal… to… to...well I am not sure where it is exactly."

"The chaos," the woman said softly. She took a moment and took in the appearance of the three companions that had come to her. She took a step back and gestured to Etienne and Viola only.

"You and you may enter," she said. "The dog can wait outside."

Etienne stepped forward first, offering Zwei a pitying look and Viola followed offering him a pat on the shoulder. The woman closed the door behind them and made her way down a corridor beneath the grand staircase of the great entryway they had found themselves in.

"Follow me," she said, but they already were. "My name is Professor Isabella Valentine." She pushed open a beautifully adorned door and began her descent down the staircase it revealed.

"The boy you seek," she continued. "Is my pupil, Elyar Voclain, the young master of this household."

She stopped at the bottom of the stairs and rounded on the two following behind. "Elyar is at his training, you will be silent as you enter as not to interrupt." She waited for both Etienne and Viola to nod in agreement before pushing open the door at the bottom of the staircase.

On the other side was a grand open space filled with weaponry and armour. The floor was carpeted in a rich blue with gold trimmings and the walls were covered in symbols and murals, none of which Etienne recognised, but still he found them beautiful. In the center of the room was Elyar, standing dressed in rich looking armour and beaded velvet. Most peculiar though was his helmet, the top portion of which covered his eyes completely and was engraved with an image of demonic eyes complete with short spiked brows. He stood with his great sword held downward, its hilt reaching up near his head. His sparring partner made circles around him predatorily, but even without seeing Elyar seemed to know where he was. When his partner finally struck out at him, Elyar blocked the swing by moving himself around the giant sword and lashing out with a weapon Etienne hadn't noticed. A stubby short-sword ornately decorated that appeared to be attached to his forearm all the way up to his elbow. While he struggled to move the large blade, he used it to anchor himself and propel himself around it with great speed. It seemed to only last a few seconds before the man appeared to tire himself out and Elyar stood with his short-sword pointed inches from his face.

Professor Valentine began to clap and made her way over to her student. As she approached the man who he had been sparring with bowed and quickly exited the room without a word.

Etienne and Viola approached behind the professor and while she spoke to him about his sparring, his metal eyes seemed to stare directly at Etienne.

"Are they unsettling you?" He asked, in a cold detached tone. It took a moment for Etienne to realize that Elyar was addressing him directly. He gave a short nod and the other boy smiled.

"Good," he said. "That is their intention."

Professor Valentine undid some straps under Elyar's right arm and he slid free from the blade that had apparently been attached directly to the armour at his shoulder. He reached behind his head and pulled loose the ties that held his headpiece in place and removed it. As he did he was sure to shake his light strawberry hair in front of his face, but Etienne caught a glimpse of what he was hiding. Beneath his hair his eyes were pale and blank, and scars and mottled redness riddled the surrounding skin. He kept his head down as the professor came behind him and tied a strip of blue silk around his head to cover it. The action seemed out of place for the professor who took great care not to catch any of his fringe in the silk and finished it at the back with a large bow. When she finished he raised his head as if nothing had happened. Etienne found himself wondering if he ever went without it. He turned to face Etienne and Viola once more. Etienne was surprised by how boyish his face looked without the mask and the soft curls in his fringe made him look even younger, but he was reminded of his age by the dark tone of his voice as he spoke.

"I suspect the two of you will be joining us for dinner then?" he asked, hushed and monotonous.

"Their dog waits outside," the professor said. "I suspect _he_ will be joining us as well."

Professor Valentine and Elyar led the others back up to the main entrance and once they had fetched Zwei from the front step they were shown to rooms in which they would be able to wash away their travels. As Etienne made his way down the grand staircase for dinner, it was the first time he had felt truly clean since he had left the domain of the young prophet.

Over dinner Etienne and Viola told their hosts the story of how they came to the manse. They told of Etienne and Novio escaping the prophet and his hunters, of meeting in the woods by the river, of their quest to raise the hand of Hephaestus and of Novio's demise. While the story was meant to convince Elyar to join them on their journey it was the professor who seemed most interested. It wasn't until they spoke of the wind priestess and her visions that Elyar seemed to perk up. Though Viola had advised against mentioning it, Etienne finished the story with Viola's vision of the two boys hand in hand covered in blood. It was quiet for a while and both of their hosts seemed to be deep in thought. It was Elyar who spoke first.

"You're sure it was me… the other boy in your visions?"

"I am sure," Viola said quietly.

"Then I don't have a choice. You've already seen it happen," he said matter of factly.

"There is always a choice," the professor spoke solemnly.

"And he has already made it," Viola replied. "Even now the image grows clearer than I saw first."

Etienne watched the boy and he fiddled with his cutlery, it gave him an awful sinking in his stomach to think of the pressure they were putting on this boy to help them, to risk his life for virtual strangers and their friend he had never once met. It was clear to Etienne that Professor Valentine wished for Elyar to stay, but she never voiced that opinion. She merely looked on with the others as the boy made his own choice.

"I will join you," he said. He hesitated a moment before standing abruptly and making his way to the door. He had nearly made it before Viola spoke.

"We leave this day, while the moon still glows brightly."

With that, he was off. In fact, none but Zwei finished their dinner, they all set off to ready themselves for travel.

In just a few hours, all four companions stood ready to leave. The professor approached them from the room below the stairs and pulled Elyar aside. She pressed a sword she carried with her into his hands. It was similar in size to the one he had trained with earlier, but this one was newer and more ornate and when he tried to lift it it seemed to move much easier. Elyar held the blade to his ear and a smile spread across his face. Professor Valentine carefully wrapped the hilt of the blade and helped Elyar to strap it to his back.

"Thank you, Isabella," he said. "For the sword... for everything."

She smiled just barely and gave him a curt nod. She steered him towards the door and he rejoined the others. Zwei pressed open the door and they all made to leave, but when Etienne looked back Elyar had stilled just over the threshold.

"I made him the swords to help him see," the professor explained. "They speak to him as my blade speaks to me and tells him where to go, but they cannot see in the dark."

"The lonesome heart will guide him, as the vision suggested," Viola spoke, already climbing atop one of the horses Professor Valentine had provided. "Hand in hand through the dark."

Etienne understood her meaning and climbed back up the stairs, he hesitated for a moment before taking Elyar's hand into his own and guiding him down the stairs. Etienne helped him to climb up on their horse before hopping up in front of him. Zwei and Viola looked to them, and Etienne knew they were waiting for direction. Etienne listened and the wind spoke.

"Forward… forward to the north."

Etienne pointed to the path ahead of them and they were off.

* * *

They had travelled two months by horseback before they came to the sea. The trip had bonded the group together in a way, they each had their roles to get them on the road in the morning and ready to camp in the evenings and the boys worked seamlessly together in the nights. But still Elyar seemed apart from the rest of the group. He kept out of most conversations and Etienne thought that he must feel left out any time they talked about their battle on the black glass. It was Etienne's goal now that they had this reprieve from travel when the wind blew them further north across the sea but there was no ship at port to take them, to break Elyar from his shell.

They stopped to rest at an inn by the sea, the two rooms were damp but they were warm. Elyar sat upon the bed in the room while Etienne started a fire in the hearth. When he was done he sat for a while and thought on what he could talk to Elyar about, he looked at the sword and thought about asking how it works before realizing that the sword was probably talking about him right now. He looked away hurriedly and felt himself flushing in embarrassment.

"What is it?" Elyar asked, as monotonously as ever. Etienne shored himself up and took a seat at the other end of the bed with his back against the wall.

"How does it work?" he finally asked. "The sword, I mean."

Elyar shrugged. "I don't know. It just sort of tells me what it sees."

"Yeah, but how do you hear it?" Etienne asked. " Is it in your head? Is it saying anything right now?"

"I suppose you've been thinking about this a lot," Elyar replied. "I imagine... I just hear it in my head, because it seems that nobody else can hear it, but it sounds the same as if anyone else was talking. And in terms of when it talks, I suppose it speaks when I want it to… sometimes when I am bored I'll have it describe the people around me or the building I am in, but when I am speaking it can be a bit hard to listen to the person I am talking to and the sword at the same time, so I'll only ask it to speak if someone pauses for a long time or I want to know what their reaction is to something I've said."

Etienne took a moment to process the information he was just given, a talking sword seemed to be such a magical thing, but at the same time his mind seemed to just accept it and he could think of a single thing to ask. A question he deemed to selfish came to mind, but it was the only one he had so he asked it anyway.

"How does the sword describe me?" he asked. Elyar smiled and then laughed a bit and it almost made Etienne regret asking.

"It says you look like a girl. Long curly hair to your shoulders… in a dark coppery colour. It says you've got the big eyes of a child… it suspects they're green. And your skin is pale and flecked like an egg… is that right?"

Etienne made a face but nodded anyway. "I don't look like a girl but I suppose the rest is right. Does everything it says come with an insult?"

Elyar laughed but didn't answer the question. Etienne watched as his cheeks creased where they met the scars under his bandages as he smiled and he itched for a proper look at it. It wasn't the first time he had been curious about the scars Elyar hid. In fact, the longer they spent together the more curious Etienne grew, but Elyar was always so careful to keep them hidden. Etienne thought it might be rude to ask, but blurted out the next question that came to his head, which probably wasn't any better.

"How long… have you been…" He hesitated to ask, the questions sounding worse and worse the further along he got.

"Blind?" Elyar finished for him, and surprisingly enough he didn't look all too bothered by it. "Since I was eight. A woman came to my house… she tried to take me away from my parents... told them I was special. My parents refused... of course, and she left. But then she came back... and she wasn't alone. She threw something at my father... a powder of some sort. She lit it up with her magic wand and he burned away. I guess... some of the powder got on me too because when I ran to him the lights went out... forever."

Etienne couldn't believe it. Surely the woman from his story _was_ the priestess, but the Prophet had never given the impression that they knew of anyone else like Novio and himself. And if they murdered his father, why had they left him behind? He thought of telling Elyar who he expected it was that murdered his father but decided to keep it to himself.

Elyar looked to the sword and then back to Etienne.

"What's wrong?" he asked. Etienne thought quickly of something that might explain his pause and again only one thing came to mind. If he asked, he could get out of explaining himself and perhaps satisfy his curiosity.

"Would it be to forward... if I asked to see…" Etienne paused when Elyar seemed to stiffen. "I would understand if it makes you uncomfortable or if you do not trust me."

"I trust you," Elyar said, without hesitation. "I suppose we are friends now, and surely _you_ have seen worse things..."

Etienne hesitated before reaching behind Elyar's head and pulling loose the bow that held his silk in place. Etienne found himself holding his breath as the scarf slid down his face. He brushed Elyar's fringe to the side with his fingers and he smiled. It was not nearly as bad as he had expected, there was a mottled pattern of pale and red spots that covered the area and those spots were criss crossed with silvery white scars, that all appeared smooth and almost... pretty. The only deep scars were six or seven dark red ones that made their way from just under his brow to the top of his cheekbone and even those couldn't be called gruesome. Elyar grabbed his hand when he made to touch one and his eyebrows furrowed. His eyes darted around in the general direction of Etienne as he spoke.

"Why are you smiling?" he asked in his serious tone.

Etienne smiled even bigger at the question. "It's just that, with the way you are... so dour, and... moody, I was expecting something… terrible," Etienne explained. "Your face is just fine. I would go as far as to say that you do it a disservice by covering up."

Etienne meant what he said, but he could tell that Elyar did not believe the words. "I don't think most people would agree with that," he said. "If you could help me tie it back now."

Etienne frowned but did as he was asked tying the silk back in place taking care, just as the professor had, not to trap any of Elyar's curls beneath it.

When he was finished both of them fell silent, but Etienne thought it was different now… somehow less awkward than it had been before.

A short time had past and Etienne had offered to read aloud from a book that Viola had given him, a collection of stories past down through the ages and all featuring the swords Siegfried and his band had been seeking. It was mid way through one of these stories that the two were interrupted by Viola who claimed to have a surprise for them in the inn's common room.

Etienne grabbed Elyar's hand and guided him down the stairs behind Viola, when they reached the bottom Etienne was surprised to be face to face with one of the stars of the story. Siegfried stood with Zwei, the woman Cassandra, and even more surprising the wind priestess Talim.

Siegfried greeted them with a curt nod, Cassandra echoed the motion but added a stiff smile. She looked healthier, more heroic and she had seemingly replaced her blade with a beautiful broadsword she wore slung behind her back.

Talim approached them from behind the others with her hands outstretched. She grabbed Etienne and Elyar's joined hands and held them in her own.

"I am so glad to see you've been successful," she said softly. "I am more certain than ever, that we will bring back your friend."

She smiled and released their hands and Etienne took that moment to introduce Elyar to the newcomers. After that the group sat down at one of the inn's long wood tables and briefed each other on their respective journeys. Siegfried and Cassandra had left Schwarzwind in the charge of some princess named Hildegard to manage the front line assaults on their enemy and instead focused their attention on researching another way to open the portal to the astral chaos. Their aim was to bring back the other hands of Hephaestus. While they were unable to discover any alternative method, they did come across a number of rumours that suggested the chaos may be seeping out into this realm up in the colder regions to the north. Which is why they ended up here, seeking passage across the sea. And as for Talim, they had only run into her outside the inn. She had tracked a tainted wind across two continents. She _said_ she had come across all sorts of strange creatures on her journey, even purified a group of what she described as lizardmen, though Etienne didn't believe that part.

* * *

It was two days before a ship docked at port that was heading north, and two days more before it set out again. The journey across the sea was to take nearly a month and every day that passed it grew colder and colder. Etienne and Elyar spent most of their time below deck reading the stories of the sword and discussing which parts of each they believed actually happened and which parts were simply fantastic stories. They finished the book a four days before making landfall and spent the remainder of their days making up great feats that they might add to their own stories when this was all finished.

When they made port Etienne thought there was something ominous about the air, and the people in the towns they passed through were hardly to be seen, and when they were seen they never spoke. They travelled two days through snow once they had reached the wilder regions, but then all at once the journey seemed to be over. They had come across a shallow river flowing from the mouth of a cave and it was here that Talim said she felt the tainted air emanate from.

The group was silent, but when Etienne looked to the faces of the others they all looked as determined as ever and it shored up his courage. The group made their way single file up the center of the river and as the light from outside of the cave grew distant Etienne found Elyar's hand in his once more.

It was two hours down the twisting tunnel before Siegfried called for a halt. The river continued on ahead, but cut into the wall, a stone stairway led out of the water and up. Talim made her way towards the steps and it seemed as if she was facing some heavy resistance.

"The taint is thick here," she whispered. "This is the path we must take."

Etienne and Elyar made their way up the staircase at the tail of the group. Etienne could see an odd light at the top of the stair and when they reached it they were surprised to find themselves in a great hall seemingly built into the mountain itself. Water trickled down the supports that lined the walls and the strange light seemed to be emanating from the far end of the hall. As they got closer they could see what was emitting it, there built into the furthest wall were two grand golden thrones surrounded by large crystals in brilliant blues and reds jutting from the stone walls themselves. Etienne was shocked to discover that it was the crystals that were casting the odd light.

"Who are they?" Elyar asked. It was clear that the sword could see in the light of the crystals, but Etienne took note that he never let go of his hand. Etienne took in the figures on the throne, the first a man with golden curls and the second a girl with long blonde hair tied back in a braid. They sat as still as death, both of their eyes closed as if in a peaceful sleep.

Cassandra made her way slowly towards the girl. "Phyrra?" she called. But the girl did not answer. When she finally reached her she held the girl's face in her hands and turned to the group with a grave expression. "She's as cold as ice."

Siegfried approached the boy and touched his hand to his cheek. "Patroklos too," he said.

"What happened to them?" Zwei asked to anyone. "Why have we come here?"

Etienne looked to Talim to answer the query, but it was Viola who spoke.

"The moon shows me the wine must flow," she said. "This is where the portal opens."

"Yes," Talim agreed. "The barrier is so thin here the wind blows right on through."

"Then let's be done with it then." Zwei interrupted, tossing a small knife to Etienne.

Suddenly everything was real for Etienne. It was terrifying to think that this might not work, that all they worked towards might be lost, that Novio might be lost… but he owed Novio enough that he had to at least try. He pressed the blade into Elyar's hand.

"Cut deep," he said. But Elyar didn't listen, instead he joined their hands around the blade.

"Together," Elyar whispered with a nod. And as he pulled the blade both of their hands were cut.

"Two boys," Viola said quietly. "Hand in hand. Covered in blood."

The blood was warm in their hands and as the drops pattered on the floor every member of the group searched the area for what was to come. What came was not what they expected.

Emerging from the staircase was the Young Prophet Zasalamel, the Priestess Eres, and the Hunter Lord Rundas, their robes seeming to glow in the pulsing purple light emanating from the crystals.

"I knew I could count on you," the Prophet spoke. "All of you. You have proven yourselves so resourceful time and time again, and now you've found it."

He turned around in a circle admiring the great hall around them.

"Imagine the _good_ I could do here," he said. His next words weren't in english, they were some sort of chant and his minions advanced on the group as soon as he began.

"We must stop him!" Talim called. Zwei advanced on the hunter with Cassandra not far behind him. Siegfried took on the Priestess, her small sceptre matching his grand sword blow for blow. Etienne made to go after the Prophet, but Viola held out her arm to stop him.

"The wine must flow," she said. "You must open the way." Then she was off. She sent her orb careening for the Prophet and when he knocked it away, she swung it back around to begin the attack anew. Etienne didn't know what more he could do to open the portal, but Elyar squeezed his hand and their blood poured more freely.

A warm gust of wind blew from nowhere and stopped all the fighting with its power. At first Etienne thought the portal must have opened, but what he found instead was that the Prophet had finished his incantations.

"Why are you here?" A raw voice asked. Etienne turned around to find that Patroklos and Phyrra had risen from their thrones. "Why can't you leave us in peace?" Patroklos asked again.

"The world of men needs the swords," Eres spoke. "They could not stay hidden forever."

"The swords aren't here," Phyrra said, her voice raspy with disuse. "We sent them into the void."

The Young Prophet stepped forward. "Foolish children," he said. "The swords go where they please and I think you'll find them.. much closer to home."

A resounding crack echoed throughout the hall. Etienne looked down to find a crack in the ground growing from where their blood had pooled on the floor. He pulled Elyar along as he ran away from the spot he knew the portal would open. All those present stood still once again in awe of the great mystical structure before them, but Etienne's attention was drawn instead to the eyes of Patroklos and Phyrra which now glowed blue and red respectively.

The others took no notice until Phyrra let out a guttural scream that seemed to shake the very mountain around them. The crystals on the wall began to crash to the ground and when Patroklos and Phyrra held out their hands the crystals rose in a whorl around them and reformed into the spirit blades in their hands.

"The swords have returned," the Young Prophet spoke flatly. "I will close the portal. Kill who you must."

The hunter continued his fight with Zwei, and the Priestess sought to get her revenge on Cassandra. Talim spun through the air and landed between Zasalamel and the portal, he began to chant and she countered with incantations of her own. As he closed the gap between them and struck out at her they began to fight in earnest while their war of words continued. Satisfied with Talim's efforts to keep the portal open the two boys looked for where they could be helpful elsewhere. Siegfried's attempts to calm Patroklos seemed to be failing and Patroklos was now striking at him as Siegfried parried the blows. That left only Phyrra for the boys to take on.

She came at them wild and fast easily handling them both at the same time. In the corner of his eye Etienne could see that Zwei had gotten the upper hand on the Hunter. He had him in some sort of hold and then suddenly the wolf came out. With a howl it pushed out and ran through the Hunter's chest. It didn't seem to wound him externally, but Lord Rundas fell to the ground dead all the same.

At nearly the same time on the other side of the room was a scream. Cassandra too had bested her opponent, shattering the Priestesses sceptre with her sword and with it her power, her robes danced around her and she fled as she had in the woods so long ago.

In her victory she failed to see Siegfried hurtling towards her, sent flying by a strike from Patroklos. Triumphant, Patroklos turned his attention to the two boys battling his sister and joined the fray. Etienne and Elyar had barely held their own against Phyrra and the added onslaught by Patroklos quickly proved overwhelming.

Patroklos opened a gash in Etienne's side and Elyar moved to help him stop the bleeding.

"We read about you. You were supposed to be the hero," Etienne said pitifully. He knew he must've sounded like a child, but he didn't care… it was true.

"I am," Patroklos replied, but the voice wasn't his own. It was hollow now and it seemed to echo inside itself. He unsheathed his sword and held it above the two boys ready to strike, but he paused… there was a voice.

"Patroklos…" it said. "Don't do this."

When he looked up at the figure who spoke the blue glow of his eyes dimmed and for a moment his own eyes could be seen clearly. "Mother?" he asked.

Etienne saw the woman step through the portal, she nodded to her son… she was so beautiful.

"Patroklos… Phyrra," she said. "Lay your swords down, they've done enough."

For a moment, Etienne believed they were going to listen, but the glow in their eyes returned.

The woman raised the sword she had carried with her through the portal as her children rounded on her instead and from behind her another figure raised arms, prepared to fight. It was Novio. Tears filled Etienne's eyes at just the sight of him. He wished he had the strength… that he could get up and run to him.

Talim stepped into his eyeline, putting herself between the children and their mother. "Your family has seen enough pain for these swords," she said solemnly. "I know now why I was brought here." She turned to face Patroklos and Phyrra and as she did, a wind began to rise growing in power until she rose too. The wind seemed to flow into her and when she turned her hands to the two spirit sword wielders the wind pulled at them. From their eyes the glowing light seemed to stretch up and into the wind priestess's hands. With one last great heft she pulled the last of the light into herself and as she did she began to glow herself. Not blue, not red, but a blinding white light. The light swelled and then shot out in all directions and in the space in the air where Talim once was there was nothing. Her two crescent blades fell to the ground with a clatter.

Etienne caught a glimpse of gold as the Young Prophet sunk into the shadows, there was the telltale whirring of fabric as he too fled.

As the lights dimmed and settled to the ground around them, Sophitia embraced her children. Etienne watched as she took turns holding each of them and then back again, before Novio stepped into his view. He had tears in his eyes, but he was beaming. Etienne reached out for him with his free hand and Novio held it.

"I knew you'd come for me," Novio said.

"I had some help," Etienne replied.

"I figured," Novio laughed, gesturing to Elyar who was still working on dressing Etienne's wound.

"Nice to meet you," Elyar said. "I've heard so much."

Zwei approached the group carrying an unconsious Viola in his arms. "It's time to go. Etienne can you walk?"

Etienne nodded in response and rose with assistance from Novio and Elyar. They propped him up on their shoulders and readied themselves for the long walk ahead.

"Wait," Etienne said. "What about the swords, surely we can't just leave them here?"

Siegfried picked up Soulcalibur and brought it over to him. "Without the spirit inside," he began. "These blades are nothing but glass." He dropped the blade and it shattered on the ground. "Wherever the spirit of the swords went when the Wind Priestess was done with them, I am sure it won't belong before they show themselves again."

As the group made their long journey back home they spoke often on what they might do when they get back. Viola, thought she might try and find the man she remembered calling father and of course Zwei had volunteered to join her in that. Cassandra and Sophitia wanted nothing more than to spend time with their family, so often forced apart. Siegfried would rejoin Hilde and Schwarzwind on the front lines… battle _was_ the only thing he truly knew. Elyar would return home and complete his training with Professor Valentine, before joining Etienne and Novio on whatever adventure they find themselves on. And for Etienne and Novio, there was adventure, but first there was something else that they thought they should do.

* * *

It took them five months and a few weeks to reach the temple. Etienne could hear the flutes and bells well before they reached the mountain itself. As they reached the temple with news of what happened to the priestess Etienne was surprised to find that none of the children seemed sad. In fact they all seemed to know what had happened already. The crowd of youngsters gathered around as Etienne brought forth the crescent blades of the priestess that they had carried with them. As they unwrapped the covering, it was whisked away by the wind. The silk fluttered through the crowd before being snatched out of the air by one of the older girls with a mischievous smile.

"I guess these belong to you." Etienne said.

The End.

* * *

Post Script:

Elyar slept fitfully in his featherbed. He had been sleeping poorly ever since he had returned. It didn't help that his sword never stopped talking these days. Even from his sleep he could hear it's incessant chatter. He sat up in his bed and faced the sword and it fell quiet. But in seconds it was speaking again and louder than before… it's voice had changed. It was that of a woman now. "Open your eyes," it called to him.

He did as he was told and was shocked to find that he could see. He made his way down the hall in a daze. He entered the bathroom and looked into the mirror… the eyes that looked back at him were not his own. He has seen them before, glowing eyes... a fierce blue.

* * *

Authors Note:

Alas, that is the end. This was just a sort of writing practice I was doing based on some ideas I had of what I would like to see in Soulcalibur 6, but I ended up enjoying it quite a bit... trying to bring back some characters we lost in 5 and trying to find a place for as many characters as possible was fun. (I had a side story for Xiba and Leixia and clan on a quest to save Kilik, but it was so separate that I thought I might do it in another story, but this one ended up taking forever.)

In the end the spirit of Soulcalibur has inhabited Elyar, and I have some ideas of where Soul Edge went, but I suppose I'll save that for Soulcalibur 7. I hope you enjoyed. =)


End file.
